When my husband and I were dating, we took a trip to Vancouver. One of the things you can do there is take a horse drawn carriage ride around the park.
“Let’s go,” I said. “That will be romantic.”
“Oh, I’m allergic to horses,” he said.
“Come on,” I wheedled. “You can sit in the back. You don’t have to go near them. PLEEEASE!” And because he is a good guy, he said OK.
About halfway through, I looked over at him, wondering why he was so quiet. “I need to get off,” he choked in a high pitched voice. “I…can’t….breathe.”
So off we went, having to navigate back to the park entry by foot, me weighed down by the large weight of the “HEEL” emblem replacing my head. I figured he was allergic to horses the way he was allergic to cats, a minor inconvenience, but apparently it was the kind of asthmatic reaction that can send someone to the ER.
People with pet allergies face a lot of struggles trying to figure out what the best response is to them. For many, antihistamines do the trick. Others have to get allergy shots. For many people, it’s a small price to pay for keeping a loving pet in the home.
When I was at Rug Doctor last month, we had a great presentation from Joy Krieger of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation. According to their website, for about 20-30% of people with asthma, cat contact can trigger a severe asthma attack. It’s nothing to mess around with, and for this reason many allergists flatly recommend people not have cats in the house if someone in the house is asthmatic.
The reality is, many people see this as a last ditch effort and try everything in their power to manage their allergies before removing a pet from the house. And lots of those people, fortunately, are successful. In addition to medical treatments, science has made environmental management an easier proposition, from home HEPA filters to house cleaners that bind allergens to more easily make them removable. I’m amazed at the dedication many people have to keeping their pets in their home, and I’m so glad there are options out there.
I know in my case, I would do any and all of the above if I had a pet allergy, but I would be beside myself if my child’s doctor told me I was risking their health.
What do you do when it’s your child that’s allergic?
My heart breaks for people who have to rehome an animal because of pet allergies. I would gladly do anything in my power to keep a pet when it’s my own health I’m compromising, but what is a parent to do when a doctor looks them in the eye and says, “Your child has asthma. You can’t keep your pet”? It’s a terrible position to be in as a parent, and one with which I have nothing but sympathy. They are damned if they do and damned if they don’t in most cases. I don’t know of anyone for whom it was an easy choice.
Anyone here have to deal with pets and/or kids and allergies? What did you end up doing?
My friend’s husband is allergic to dogs, so they chose low shedding breeds (Kerry Blue terriers and Giant Schnauzer), and bathe weekly.
I am highly allergic to both dogs and cats (according to the allergy prick testing that I’ve had done). However, I only have reactions to cats, and not all cats. My parents knew when I was a baby that I had allergies, including to dogs (of which they had one), however the doctor told them that because I was allergic to so many things (all environmental basically) that a dog in the house really wouldn’t make a difference. So I have grown up with pets in the house and currently have 2 dogs and 1 cat. On the allergy testing I score at the highest level for both cats and dogs, but also for just about every tree, grass, mold, dust, you name it. For me, the joy and comfort my pets bring me is worth whatever medication I have to take. Luckily, neither of my kids have allergies. That would have been awful if I had been told my kids were asthmatic and couldn’t live with pets.
Wow. I’ve had dogs and a few other animals almost my whole life. I can’t imagine having to make that choice. My kids all have four legs, so I don’t have to worry about it from that end, but get this — BOTH of my dogs are allergic to people dander and house dust. Go figure…
Lisa, my youngest dog (who is also my biggest) has allergies too. We actually have him on shot therapy because it was so bad. I just laughed and said it was only fair, I’m allergic to him so he’s allergic to me. We love each other anyway.
I have asthma. I cannot have cats – no way – which has forever bummed me out because I’d LOVE to have a cat. I now have two rats – they were supposed to be my son’s pets but blahblahblah. I clean them daily. If their nails even *touch* me, I get an itchy welt. I can’t hold them, just keep them safe and fed and clean. I use an air purifier that runs 24/7. I can’t find anyone I trust to rehome them – strangely, some people are opposed to rats. ;p
We do have two dogs and I have absolutely no problem with them. My kid did not inherit either the asthma nor the allergies, thank goodness.
Luckily, I guess, the average rat lifespan is just two years. I love them, but they aren’t doing me any good, healthwise.
I have asthma. I cannot have cats – no way – which has forever bummed me out because I’d LOVE to have a cat. I now have two rats – they were supposed to be my son’s pets but blahblahblah. I clean them daily. If their nails even *touch* me, I get an itchy welt. I can’t hold them, just keep them safe and fed and clean. I use an air purifier that runs 24/7. I can’t find anyone I trust to rehome them – strangely, some people are opposed to rats. ;p
We do have two dogs and I have absolutely no problem with them. My kid did not inherit either the asthma nor the allergies, thank goodness.
Luckily, I guess, the average rat lifespan is just two years. I love them, but they aren’t doing me any good, healthwise.
I have asthma. I cannot have cats – no way – which has forever bummed me out because I’d LOVE to have a cat. I now have two rats – they were supposed to be my son’s pets but blahblahblah. I clean them daily. If their nails even *touch* me, I get an itchy welt. I can’t hold them, just keep them safe and fed and clean. I use an air purifier that runs 24/7. I can’t find anyone I trust to rehome them – strangely, some people are opposed to rats. ;p
We do have two dogs and I have absolutely no problem with them. My kid did not inherit either the asthma nor the allergies, thank goodness.
Luckily, I guess, the average rat lifespan is just two years. I love them, but they aren’t doing me any good, healthwise.
I have asthma. I cannot have cats – no way – which has forever bummed me out because I’d LOVE to have a cat. I now have two rats – they were supposed to be my son’s pets but blahblahblah. I clean them daily. If their nails even *touch* me, I get an itchy welt. I can’t hold them, just keep them safe and fed and clean. I use an air purifier that runs 24/7. I can’t find anyone I trust to rehome them – strangely, some people are opposed to rats. ;p
We do have two dogs and I have absolutely no problem with them. My kid did not inherit either the asthma nor the allergies, thank goodness.
Luckily, I guess, the average rat lifespan is just two years. I love them, but they aren’t doing me any good, healthwise.
I am allergic to cats. Never had one growing up, so I had no clue. When I got married, we decided to get a cat because we lived in a rental house and couldn’t have a dog. My husband had cats throughout his life. Within hours of bringing her home, I was miserable. Sneezing, congestion, you name it. I took the cat to a local place known for rehoming cats and went on my way. The next morning, I woke up in a panic because I just couldn’t part with the cat (that I had for only a day). I called the place and said I was coming back to get her. They said someone was already on the way to look at her and possibly take her. I said she wasn’t up for adoption and don’t let anyone take her before I get there. I brought her home, went to the allergy doctor, and took shots for a couple of years. I still take allergy meds, but not every day. We had her for 17 years until she passed from heart problems. Two months after we lost her, I was at the shelter bringing home another cat. This one thinks she has to sleep with her head on my pillow, facing me. And I wake up with swollen eyes every morning. But it’s all worth it. She is such a sweetie! And I’m such a glutton for punishment.
I am an allergy sufferer. I’m allergic to cats, dogs, horses (all of which I own) and additionally rats and mice (which I work with), and all manner of tree, grass and weed pollens. Oh, and don’t forget the molds. But I LOVE my pets, and even after pleas from my doctor to get rid of them, I’ve started taking allergy shots and have found a huge relief from my symptoms. Note, I’m not symptom free, but I can manage with OTC drugs from here on out. It’s worth it to me. I don’t know how I’d deal with it if I had highly allergic kids. Fortunately, being kid-free, this isn’t an issue for me. I can only be sympathetic to those in this situation, and be REALLY GLAD I Don’t have to choose between pets and kids.
I’m highly allergic to some dogs and some cats. There is no rhyme or reason to it, and interestingly, it’s an adult-onset allergy. As a kid I was fine. But now if I pet my friends’ dog Mobius and then touch my skin without washing my hands, I break out in hives. If he licks me, that skin burns. If I eat at their house forget it – twenty minutes later my chest will sieze up and I’ll be gasping for breath. Allegra or Claritin can delay the inevitable, but I can only be there for a couple of hours tops. Recently we’ve noticed the same thing happening with my brother in law’s dogs. I had to leave their house a couple of weeks ago because I couldn’t get any air into my lungs. It felt like I was slowly suffocating. Everyone looked at me like I was nuts because it had never happened before. Other dogs I’m perfectly fine around, no problems whatsoever. I was also somewhat allergic to Miles. He used to sleep at my head so you can imagine how I felt when I woke up. Dakota, who has long hair and is a constant groomer, I am not allergic to in any way. It’s weird. Oh, and rats? Very allergic! My friends had a rat in college and I would always have an attack if I got within a foot of its house if the top was open.
Since the inception of some of the newer inhaled steroids, I can have indoor pets for the first time in my life. How wonderful to be able to pet and cuddle them, instead of petting them outside and having to wash and change my clothes after! I find if I’m having a hay fever attack, a tablespoon of honey works miracles. It doesn’t last a long time, but the beauty of it is you can use it as often as you need it. I buy the little packets by the case and keep some in the car for when my eyes start burning…not a good thing when you are driving!
I could live without my indoor cat, but I don’t know what I would do without my indoor dogs.
I am allergic to all kinds of furred critters (my friend’s elk skin gave me such a bad reaction that my eyes swelled shut) and I can have severe asthma attacks if I’m not diligent. That, however, does not stop me from having three cats or walking with my friend and her dog every evening. I’ve worked closely with my allergist to keep my asthma under control. I keep the cats out of my bedroom and have a Roomba that vacuums the floors every day (I work full time and am a PhD student at night (almost PhD ABD) so daily vacuuming is difficult). Over time, like with allergy shots, I’ve built up a tolerance to my cats. I didn’t realize how tolerant I was to their personal dander until I recently lost one of my cats to an embolism and couldn’t live without a black kitty in my life. For a month after I brought home the new guy, I was sneezing, snuffling, and wheezing. He is so totally worth it, though.
I used to work at a no-kill cat shelter with a forever open return policy and every once in a while this would happen. Its truly heartbreaking for these families. They’ve had the cat or cats usually for years, love them, take great care of them, but then a child or grandchild is born and when its determined the cats are the issue, they have to put the child first. There are often tears and long goodbyes, and the guilt they feel is evident, but we understood.
I’m very allergic to cats (and some dogs, particularly Akitas for some reason) but decided it was well worth the drugs and asthma to have a little bundle of furry joy myself. However, knowing that I come from a long line of family members with cat allergies, I realized at the same time that there was a good chance that any children I had would inherit some kind of sensitivity to cats themselves. So I made the conscious (though granted not too difficult) decision to just never have children and thus never put myself in the position you’re talking about, where I’d have to choose between my child’s health and the cat. My beloved cat passed on earlier this year after 15 years with me and I’ve never regretted enduring my own allergies or my decision to avoid the child allergy issue in order to keep him with me. I’d happily do it all again for him.
I do! My parents learned I am allergic to dogs when they took me (around age 2) to a friend’s house. The friend had a small dog (Jack Russell perhaps) and within minutes of playing with the dog I was sneezing and my face was covered in red blotches – then I rubbed my eyes – bad idea! There is photo of me that day and I look like I’d just lost a prize fight. When the pediatrician suggested “dog allergy” my mom said “not possible” since we’d had a dog for over a year and this was a new issue. Off to the specialist we went – and sure enough – I’m allergic to: dogs, cats, horses, feathers, mold, dustmites, several pollens, olive trees, and a few other odd items. Turned out our dog was part poodle – therefore, had ‘hair’ not ‘fur’ – so she did not trigger my allergy. I was given a multitude of medications to combat “the symptoms” and became a champion pill taker before I even started preschool. Within a year we also discovered I have asthma. Usually “allergen triggered” but occasionally triggered by exercise. Many years of weekly allergy shots, medications, inhalers and nebulized treatments later…I take a daily Claritin and carry a rescue inhaler…I have owned cats and have not been sans dog for a very long time. I’m lucky. I “outgrew” most of my severe “symptoms” (partly due to the desensitizing shots I endured I’m sure) and my asthmas is now exertion related for the most part (except when we have wild fires or I catch some lovely respiratory bug). However, if I let the dust situation get out of hand at home, or I ‘forget’ to sweep up the fur tumbleweeds as frequently as needed…I pay. Usually, I get a sinus headache that kicks my butt for a day – a friendly: “I don’t care how much you hate to dust you just have to do it even if you have to wear a goofy looking mask” reminder. Thank Dog none of my human babies is allergic to my fur-babies cuz I honestly can’t tell you how I’d react to that.
I volunteer at a no kill shelter, with a forever return policy as well, and since I’m there usually on Sundays, I see many, many adoptions, as well as the occasional returns. Whenever someone comes in saying that a member of their family is allergic, I always find myself being silently frustrated at first, but then I realize that if it’s a newborn baby, then it must be an agonizing decision… So now whenever I overhear that someone is bringing back a dog because someone in their family is allergic, I always picture a little 3 week old baby, that is as defenseless as the dog they are bringing back to the shelter. Somehow that makes me feel better. I can’t imagine having to make that decision myself 🙁